U.S. Rep Mike Coffman[2] sits outside before Chief Justice Robert Hyatt's courtroom before taking the stand in a redistricting[3] trial. The Aurora Republican's district could greatly change.

GOP Congressman Mike Coffman said today he thinks Democrats are taking aim at him because they view him as a potential U.S. Senate candidate.

A Democratic map for new congressional boundaries takes Coffman out of a safe GOP seat in the south metro area and puts him into a competitive district that includes almost all of Aurora.

“I understand the mentality of the maps,” said Coffman, R-Aurora.

An attorney for two Latino groups that have joined in the redistricting lawsuit also questioned Coffman about his support for certain pieces of legislation, including English Only[4], the Dream Act[5] and the Birthright Citizens Act[6].

The attorney asked if Coffman’s support those three issues would change if his district had more Hispanics. “No,” Coffman said.

Coffman was the first witness to take the stand today in a redistricting trial in Denver District Court. The witness phase of the trial is expected to end today.

Colorado Democratic Party chairman Rick Palacio disputed Coffman’s claim he was viewed as a Senate threat.

“I have heard no one discuss Rep. Coffman as a credible candidate for the U.S. Senate,” Palacio said.

“He supports an extreme Tea Party ideology that Coloradans reject, and most recently began peddling anti-Hispanic legislation. Coloradans would not elect Coffman to the Senate, especially against independent-minded senators like Mark Udall and Michael Bennet.”

During his testimony, Coffman said Aurora benefits from having a congressman in the majority party and a congressman in the minority party. Coffman represents southern Aurora, while Democrat Ed Perlmutter[7] represents the northern part of the city.

The map the Republicans have proposed more closely resembles the congressional map adopted a decade ago. Coffman’s current district is comprised of all of Douglas and Elbert counties, and portions of Park, Jefferson and Arapahoe counties.

But Coffman’s district needs to change; he needs to lose nearly 80,000 people based on the U.S. Census. The boundaries of Colorado’s seven congressional districts must be redrawn so each has roughly the name number of of people.